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# Paramedics aided by device
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/paramedics-aided-by-device/
- Published: 2008-07-04T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T20:04:38.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Health, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Paramedics aided by device*

*By NORA SORENA CASEY Special to the Daily Press*

CITYWIDE Residents and paramedics alike can breath a big sigh of relief with the help of new medical aids to alleviate respiratory problems.

The Santa Monica Fire Department is now the first paramedic agency in Los Angeles County equipped with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) devices that can provide speedy relief for patients suffering from respiratory problems ranging from asthma to heart failure to drowning.

“It’s great,” said Emergency Medical Services Educator Jodi Nevandro. “We’ve had approximately 25 patients and the vast majority, over 90 percent, have had improved breathing right there in front of the paramedics.”

The CPAP device is an airtight mask that provides continuos pressure to the lungs to keep collapsing airways open and oxygenated. They consist of two parts: A $1,000 regulating device called a port-a-vent and the disposable CPAP circuit, consisting of a mask, regulator and hose at a cost of $40 each.

The mask is particularly welcome because otherwise paramedics are forced to resort to much more invasive treatment that may have negative side effects. They might insert a breathing tube through the vocal chords and push air into the lungs from a small inflatable mask. This treatment is hostile and can often be a problem for older patients, whose bodies may resist being transferred off breathing tubes once they are placed on them, officials said. when a tube is placed down the throat,” said Captain Jeff Furrows, SMFD paramedic coordinator.“The best method to treat these people is when you don’t have to resort to that.”

Although the patient may experience initial discomfort, CPAP devices are non-invasive and effectively help relieve anxiety and respiratory problems. The patient may experience a sensation similar to sticking their head out of a moving car’s window.

CPAP devices have been used in hospitals and, more recently, for private use by patients suffering from sleep apnea.

However, before they could be used by para-medics they needed to be cleared by a L.A. County EMS agency, which approved the devices in January after medical review. As soon as that happened, SMFD went ahead and purchased six CPAP devices.

Of the approximately 750 patients a month paramedics respond to, 30 to 40 experience shortness of breath. About half of those people can now be treated with the new CPAP devices, according to Nevandro.

“We’re pretty excited about having them because it does offer a higher level of care,” Nevandro said.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/070408-04_01.jpg)

(Photo: BY ALICE OLLSTEIN Special to the Daily Press)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 4, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/070408.pdf?ref=smdp.com)